The Labyrinth Of Atum
by Aww-Thor
Summary: SG1 goes to a planet. Getting back is not so easy. Set sometime in Season 4, a few spoilers from seasons 14. Written to be like an episode of the show. My first fanfiction, make of it what you will, but PLEASE tell me what you think of it.
1. Chapter 1 Another Briefing

Jack was on his way to yet another one of the infernal briefings. He really didn't know why they even bothered with them, things never worked out like they planned. Some stinking Goa'uld was always messing with their plans, or the locals would interfere, or any of a number of things. He let out a brief exasperated sigh as he continued to walk down the halls of the SGC. For a place that has been attacked dozens of times by many threats, shut down on more than one occasion and buried in a mountain it looked pretty good. The décor could use a little work, though.

Taking a quick glance at Teal'c, Sam and Daniel who were already there, he sat down in his chair to be briefed. He really hoped that Carter would keep the techno-babble to a minimum, and that Daniel would try to die only once during the briefing. "Any idea what this mission's about Teal'c?" He asked the stoic Jaffa sitting opposite him.

"I believe we are going through the Stargate to another world, O'Neill." Jack really didn't know why he even bothered asking Teal'c questions, you can have better conversations with magic eight-balls.

Finally, General Hammond entered the room. "As you were." Hammond took his place and turned to Daniel, "So, what is it that has you so interested in P1G-337?". Did that Hammond ever have a cushy job, Jack thought, we get to go get shot at by whoever happens to be around, and he just has to give us the go-ahead. Jack knew that if he kept his record up he was inline for a promotion, or a court-martial, whichever came first.

"Oh, yes, P1G-337" Daniel said as he gathered up various papers and walked up to the display. "This planet is quite some distance away from any other of the planets in the network, and our initial scans showed no signs of life." Daniel paused to adjust his glasses.

"Great, you've found us a nice quiet getaway planet. Anything else important I need to know?" Jack inquired as he tapped his hands on the table.

"Yes, well, what's fascinating is that all around the gate room on P1G-337 there are hieroglyphics, which seem to date back longer than any others I've ever seen." How Daniel could be so riveted by poorly drawn pictures, Jack never knew.

"So just a standard go in, take the archeological data, take a look around and head back?" Sam queried. Well, at least we won't get shot then, Jack mused to himself.

"Yeah, I guess." Daniel agreed as he sat back down, wondering why noone else seemed very excited. Oh! He had forgotten to bring the images of the hieroglyphs on the walls up on the display. That was it.

"Alright then, you will have an hour to get prepped, and then you'll head out. I expect a report back by three hours after your departure. Dismissed." General Hammond left the room, and they disassembled.

As they headed towards the locker rooms, Daniel stopped. "Oh, I left some of my notes on the translation of the walls I had just started on in my office, I had better go get them." He took a turning to the left and the others continued on.

"Jack, why do you always have to give Daniel such a hard time?" Sam lectured to Jack.

"I do not understand major Carter," Teal'c began "How is it possible that time may be hard?". He had spend many years with his new friends at the SGC, but Teal'c still found them to be very strange. They almost never meant what they said, and yet they still somehow managed to say what they mean. Most unusual.

"A hard time? I'm nothing but smiles and good cheer all round to everyone. My favourable disposition is famous on planets from here to...you know, one of those far-away ones we've been to.". Jack wondered at the audacity of some people, trying to say he was cynical, sarcastic and a number of other things. He had never _once_ been sarcastic. He had done it a number of times. But no more than his daily recommended intake of sarcasm. The only thing he occasionally exceeded his daily requirement of is fruit loops, but that hardly counts.

He really hoped that he wouldn't have to miss supper for this mission. Getting shot at he could take, but keeping someone from a square meal was just unacceptable.


	2. Chapter 2 Departure

"Chevron seven engaged Wormhole active"

The Stargate emitted the usual deadly bubble, and SG-1 was heading for their latest planet to explore. Sam stopped to take a brief look at the marvel of alien technology that was the Stargate, and wondered if they could ever replicate it should the need arise. She took a bold step through the Gate. Getting blasted through subspace never quite lost its' unique appeal, but Sam had gotten used to it. She took a quick evaluating glance around her. It was a little dark, with no light sources in the room except the Stargate's eerie blue glow and her own flashlight mounted on her gun. The other three members of SG-1 popped out behind her through the gate.

"It looks like all's clear" She told Jack as she turned to face him. She wouldn't give up her job for anything in the world, but being around the man you love and knowing that love cannot be was very distressing at times. Knowing that he felt the same for her only made matters worse.

"Sure there aren't any Goa'uld hiding in that little goatee of Teal'c's?" Jack gave a deep inquisitorial glare at Teal'c's facial hair.

"You are most amusing O'Neill" Teal'c said distastefully as he moved his staff weapon a little to the left, putting it between him and Jack.

"Teal'c was that...sarcasm?" Carter ventured.

"I think we need to get him reassigned, Jack is clearly a bad influence." Daniel said as he proceeded to read the hieroglyphs all around.

"Just get the work done, people." Jack ordered. Unless Carter was mistaken, they had managed to upset Jack a little. He didn't like it when other people stole his precious sarcasm and used it right back on him. He sure was quite the character.

While Daniel continued to ogle at the walls, the others did a more in-depth search of the room for threats. Finding none, they opened a wormhole back to Earth, and sent the probe back through.

"Looks like it's safe here. We'll check out the surrounding region and analyze the ruins and we'll report back at 1700 hours, and probably return." Carter informed the SGC of their progress.

"Alright then, best of luck SG-1. Hammond out" They shut off the wormhole to Earth.

And now the real fun begins, Carter thought. Sure, this place may seem mundane, but you never knew where alien technology could be hidden. Places like this that seemed to be of interest to only Daniel had turned out to be teeming with more technology than you could shake a stick at. Although shaking sticks at things was hardly the scientific approach Samantha preferred.

"Alright, Teal'c, you're with me. Let's go see what else is in this place. Carter, you stay and guard the Gate, and make sure Daniel doesn't have too much fun." Jack delegated. Sam was not very happy with her task, she was stuck here to babysit Daniel as he prattled on about ancient cultures and such. She realized she was thinking just like Jack, and chided herself.

Jack and Teal'c turned around and were about to head out of the room into the hallway beyond when the unexpected happened (As it has a nasty way of doing whenever SG-1 is around)...


	3. Chapter 3 The Labyrinth

Their P90's flew from their arms towards the doorway. Even Teal'c's Staff weapon was torn from his strong grip, as well as his back-up Zat gun, and all the firearms formed a pile behind the doorway.

"Whoa!" Jack exclaimed. He only knew two things about his weapon flying away, that Carter would call it tele...k...something or other, and that it bad things were about to happen. A robed figure came around the corner and stood between them and their guns.

"Errr, hello, may I ask who exactly you are?" Daniel, the ever well-spoken linguist asked of the new arrival.

The robed figure's eyes glowed. That told the ever unfortunate members of SG-1 more than they needed to know. "Just the friendly neighbourhood Goa'uld apparently" Jack told Daniel.

"You will be quiet before the first and most powerful God." The Goa'uld demanded of Jack. He was a tall figure, probably about five foot eleven. The gold-trimmed deep red robe that he wore made it impossible to tell much more of his build. "I have removed your weapons for the moment, but you will soon have them back. They will not prevent your demise." his eyes were a light grey, and they were once more illuminated in a flash.

"Well what is it you intend to do with us, oh first and most powerful False God?" Jack spoke conversationally to the ominous figure standing before them. They were disarmed and helpless, their only hope to make a break for the gate behind them and hope to dial before he could stop them. A little bravado never hurt anybody though.

"Your insolence amuses me, and you will be punished in due course. You fools have been the first in many years to venture into my Labyrinth, but you will not be the first to meet a horrible death in it. I am Atum, predecessor to all other Goa'uld, and I have lived here since the dawn of Time. You are now all ensnared in my web of doom." He gave a haughty laugh in the deep voice of a Goa'uld.

During his over-long monologue, Jack had given the signal to the members of his team. As soon as Atum began his cackle, they made a break for the Gate, and Sam who was already at it began to dial. "Let's get outta here Sam!" Jack yelled.

"I'm dialing as fast as I can, sir!" she responded.

Finished his laugh, Atum leisurely walked towards them. "Leaving so soon? But my hospitality is renowned. Not one of my guests has ever left unhappy. Because none have left alive!" He once more saw fit to throw back his head in appreciation of his own humour.

Jack didn't know what the heck this Atum guy thought he was doing, but he had taken long enough that they had finished dialing, and the wormhole was open. "Let's move people!" Jack once again yelled at his crew.

They were just about to leap through the gate, when an all too familiar steel ring formed around the gate, and sealed it shut in a twinkling of the eye. They jolted to a stop just in front of the spiraling metal barrier, and heard bouts of laughter behind them.

"You use your iris to keep people out. It amuses me to use one to keep you in. There is no escape through that route. There is only one way out, and countless ways to perish. Will you now heed my words and entertain me?" Atum sneered at SG-1.

Jack was about to say something, but Carter thought it would be a good idea to pre-empt him, "Yes, sure. What is it you would have us do?". She thought it wise not to antagonize Atum, since he had the upper hand here.

"Excellent," Atum snickered "You situation is thus: you are in my maze. There is but one way out, and traps lurk all around. The entire maze will be immolated in a blaze of fire exactly one hour after I leave you. If you have not left by then, you will perish. But since I am a kind God, I will give each of you a device. It will enable you to travel back in time a short period, so that you may experience the pleasures of my maze once more. However, it will not work until five seconds before the labyrinth is burnt in an inferno. It will also not bring any of you back should you perish in my maze, you will not return to the past and be living once more. You will remain dead. You will be brought back exactly as you were when you activated the device, with whatever possessions you had at that time. So, you have countless chances to explore the surprises that await you, but only one life. And should you linger overlong, incineration awaits you. I will send your ashes back to your General Hammond. Now, I will leave to watch you suffer through my domain. You should not have come uninvited." He gave a wry smile as teleportation rings encircled him and then he vanished. Their guns were still in a pile behind him, and he had left four small circular devices at his feet.


	4. Chapter 4 Exploration

SG-1 was left in the dark room to ponder their situation. "Well he was just a bit odd, know anything about this 'Atum' guy, Daniel?" Jack turned to Daniel.

"I'm afraid so," Daniel informed the group "In Egyptian mythology, Atum was indeed the first of the Gods. He brought all the other Gods to life with his spittle or his, uhh..." Daniel floundered.

"His what?" Carter asked.

"His sperm." Daniel resumed.

"Oh. Cool." Jack commented.

"Yes, well, it's impossible to say how much he's claiming is true. But he may well be the first Goa'uld to take a host on their original planet. And I don't think any of this is applicable to getting out of here before we're, uhhh...immolated, incinerated or what have you." Daniel resumed, and began reading the hieroglyphs.

"Good point Daniel. Any way of busting through that iris Carter?" Jack asked Sam.

"No, sir. It's solid steel. Our normal rounds won't touch it, and neither will Teal'c's weapons." Carter said dejectedly.

"Is that true Teal'c, can't your weapons bust that damn thing?" Jack turned to Teal'c.

"I would assume not, O'Neill. Major Carter probably knows what she is talking about, based on my observations she is a capable officer." Teal'c replied.

"Umm...thanks...I guess that was a compliment." Samantha told Teal'c, who gave her a small nod of his head.

"Well what the heck do those hieroglyphs say Daniel, any help there?" Jack asked Daniel, feeling their options of escape drain away.

"Yeah, about that." Daniel replied, "I've only just now translated a little bit, but what I've got reads sort of like 'All trespassers here will meet a horrible fate and succumb to unimaginable horrors as their soul is rent to shards and the lifeless husk of their body is sent irretrievably deep into the underworld'." Daniel took in a deep breath as he finished.

"Wow," Jack let out a low whistle, "Would've been nice to have known that before we came here."

"Well, sorry, I just didn't have time to get started on the translation before we came. I was reading this interesting theory on how the ancient Greek language was a derivative of a dialect of..." Daniel was going on, and on...

"Yeah, well, that's helpful" Jack cut him off. "Let's get outta this room and see if this place is as bad is it's made out to be. Not to mention get our weapons back from that pile." They moved towards their firearms, but when they came by the alien devices Atum left, Carter stopped.

"Sir, shouldn't we pick these up?" She asked.

"What? You nuts? Take the things Goa'uld-ylocks left us? We don't even know what they really are. They could be bombs, or tracking devices, or..." Jack listed.

"Yes, but sir, we may need them later." Carter protested.

"I agree with O'Neill," Teal'c stated, "The Goa'uld are devious and not to be trusted."

Daniel thought he should bring up a point. "In Egyptian mythological, Atum was not the sort who would lie. He did value honour. I don't know how much can be said about the trustworthiness of Goa'uld in general, but I do think that this one would avoid an outright lie." Daniel told Jack.

"Fine, we'll take the things. But if they blow up and we all get sent flying in bloody fruit loop sized chunks, it'll be your fault." They all took a device and put it into one of the pockets of their uniforms. Proceeding to their weapons, they rearmed themselves and prepared to explore the Labyrinth.


	5. Chapter 5 A Close Encounter

As soon as they went out the door into the hallway beyond they were faced with their first choice. To go left, or to go right? They couldn't see down either path very far, since the entire place was shrouded in darkness. But it was not quite pitch-black, so they could make out general shapes. Raising the beam of light from his P90, Jack saw that both corridors twisted away and out of sight in different directions. From what he could tell, they were at the middle of an "S" type corridor.

"Right then. Teal'c and Daniel head left. Carter come with me. Move out." Jack ordered his troops.

"Jack, I don't think it's a good idea to split up in here, we don't know what dangers may be out there." Daniel disagreed.

"For crying out loud!" Jack complained, "The whole point of having a commander is that you follow their orders. Move out!."

"Sir, I think he's right. Strength in numbers." Carter sided with Daniel.

"Fine then. Since you and Daniel are so buddy-buddy, you two can head left. Teal'c, you're with me. That's final. We'll be in radio contact at all times, and if anything disastrous happens we can always double back." Jack put the final word in and the two parties split up.

When they had gone only a few steps down the hall, both parties heard a loud noise from behind them and they whirled around guns ready. Two metal gates flew out of the wall on one side and rammed into the wall opposite, blocking the two groups from reassembling.

"Well now, we can always double back and regroup, now can't we Jack?" Daniel asked loudly of Jack, who was now seven or eight paces away with two metal grids blocking them off from each other.

"Just move out." Jack said sullenly. Having a command really wasn't all it was cracked up to be. Time and time again he'd make a hard decision under pressure, only to have Daniel or Carter or even sometimes the silent Teal'c question it. Ah, well, at least the dental plan was good.

Having continued straight for about fourteen minutes, ignoring all passages that opened to their left or to their right, Teal'c became unsettled. "Should we not pursue a different route O'Neill?" He inquired.

"I don't see why, this route has been perfectly safe so fa..." Jack did not get to finish, because a great ugly green Unas took a big step out of a doorway just ahead of them and to the left.

"Graaackkkk!" It bellowed in a fury, its' eyes glazed with a cold rage as it raised a mammoth arm to smash O'Neill. Jack and Teal'c opened fire, and P90 rounds as well as energy discharges from the staff weapon filled the air. Not for long though, when they reached the Unas they were repelled by a Goa'uld force shield. Apparently Atum found it amusing to give Unas force fields, great, just great, Jack thought. The Unas's mighty blow fell upon Jack, and he was sent flying backwards several yards.

"Little help here Teal'c!" Jack shouted at the Jaffa who was now attempting hand-to-hand combat with the Unas, and managing to hold his own. "It's no good Teal'c, he probably has regenerative powers, he's just wearing you down!"

Teal'c gave the Unas a powerful smack to the head with his fist, and it sent the beast reeling for a second. Teal'c used this time to rush back to Jack, pick him up, and dash down one of the passages. "Sir! Are you alright! I heard gunfire!" Sam demanded hectically over the radio.

"Yeah, I'm fine, but there's a not-so Jolly Green Giant who seems rather intent on having Teal'c and I for dinner chasing us." Jack told her through the radio.

"Well, where are you? Maybe we can meet up, these passages must connect somewhere." Sam pointed out.

"How the hell am I supposed to know where I am? I'm in some insane Goa'uld's labyrinth being chased by an Unas!" Jack shouted at her as Teal'c continued to run down the hallways at lightning speed, carrying his commander over his shoulder like a sack of grain. "Don't worry about us, Teal'c gave that ugly thing the old Jaffa one-two punch, I think we lost him. Just continue on yourselves." Jack got Sam to stop worrying about what she couldn't change and to try and be more productive.

"Alright sir. Carter out." She terminated the transmission.

Teal'c stopped and set Jack down. "I do not know of this one-two punch of which you speak. Is it a formidable fighting form?" Teal'c spoke to Jack, who was standing up and brushing himself off.

"Yes, Teal'c, it is most formidable." Jack informed the warrior, "Now come on, we have to see what other fun things that stinking Goa'uld put in here for us to play with. Jack sighed. He wasn't having a good day. He seldom did.


	6. Chapter 6 Never Follow Daniel

Sam and Daniel took many more turnings than Jack and Teal'c, and found out much more about the Labyrinth they were in. They came to Ornate bedchambers, which sometimes gave them a mysterious compulsion to lay down and take a rest. They found massive feasts laid out for no one, but were not foolish enough to eat. They even found an armoury, with swords, shields, halberds and other similar weapons.

"Sam, I think this may have actually been a city of some ancient culture, and Atum just moved in and took it over. I think he just changed this place to suit the new purpose. I mean, think about it, construction on this scale would be a massive undertaking, and we haven't even seen one Jaffa loyal to him." Daniel analyzed as he looked at the rooms they passed walking down the hall.

"It would certainly suit the Goa'uld, taking what isn't theirs and seizing control of it." Sam agreed. She could almost see how the place could have once been beautiful, with some proper lighting and some warmer furnishings, she began to practically see the former residents going about their lives here.

"Come in Major Carter." Jack spoke over the radio.

"Yes sir?" Sam asked.

"By my watch about forty-eight minutes have passed, so I was wondering how the heck we use these techno-baubles to travel back in time if it became apparent that we are about to be immolated." Jack asked the high-tech expert of SG-1.

"Well, as far as I can tell sir, they're a fairly simple device. All they have is one big button in the centre, and I'd imagine that you just hit that. Keep in mind that they only supposedly work shortly before the end. I tried to open mine up to see how it works, but it was no good sir. The things are made out of naqahdah and at least two other elements we haven't encountered before." Sam responded to her commander.

"Great, I think I can handle pushing a button, how about you Teal'c?" Jack quipped.

"I am most proficient in the pressing of buttons, O'Neill" Carter heard Teal'c say in the background over the radio. She shook her head at the antics of those two. Here they were in God only knew what sort of danger, and they were still cracking jokes. She envied how they never lost their calm.

They made their way past a few nondescript rooms until one caught Daniel's eye. He spotted a room with more ancient hieroglyphs all over the walls, and wandered in. "Daniel, don't you remember the trouble we caused last time by going into one of these rooms?" Carter asked.

They went into the room nonetheless, and were more than a little disturbed by the bloody altar in the middle. "This place must've been used for ritual sacrifice..." Daniel quietly thought out loud.

"Great, Daniel, can we leave now?" Carter urged. Unfortunately for them, once again a massive metal gate slammed down blocking the way they came in, which was the only exit from the room. "Just great! See where your curiousity has gotten us?" She yelled angrily at Daniel. "There's no way out! We're stuck!"

"No, I don't think so..." Daniel pondered, "This is a game. He _could_ just slam those doors shut whenever, or kill us at almost any turn. For it to be _fun_ there has to be some way we can get out alive." Daniel saw into the nature of their situation. This Goa'uld sure had a perverse way of getting his kicks, but it worked to their advantage. They just might be able to find the loophole that he had put in and escape.

"Well, get started translating those walls then, I'll take a look for any hidden switches in this miserable darkness." Sam swept the light from her P90 around the room in a slow, searching arch.

Daniel began to translate out loud: "'We were a happy people. We came to this land in the time of our long-gone ancestors, and were prosperous. All were equal and all understood each other, until the Destroyer came. He could not be touched by our mightiest fighters or by the magic-lore of our elders. He tore down the Halls Of Worship, where we paid homage to our God. He replaced it with this dank chamber, where he demanded ritual sacrifice. No party may ever leave this room until one of their number has been put to a barbaric death on the altar.'" Daniel did not like the situation. Carter would no doubt just go right ahead and sacrifice him, presuming that he would somehow be miraculously resurrected. Some people just didn't understand how stressful it was to die all the time.

After about five minutes of pondering their situation and coming to no conclusions, a low hiss announced that the room was filling with a thick, green gas. "Uh-oh, Sam...I think we may be running out of time here. It's you or me, one of us can still get out alive." Daniel prepared himself for the worse.

"No!" Sam cried, "I think I've got it! If I can somehow go into a memory-trance and bring up the thoughts of Jolinar, we may be able to trick it! All it needs is a death, Jolinar's death might cut it!"

"Great! But how on earth are we supposed to put you into a trance?" Daniel was getting hectic as the gas began to curl up his leg.

"Hypnotize me or something!" Sam yelled at him.

"You don't even believe in that stuff!" Daniel shouted.

"Daniel, there's no time to argue, I don't even care that you haven't the slightest idea about how to hypnotize people!." Sam shouted right back at him.

Daniel tried waving his pocket watch around, saying the word "Sleepy" in more tones of voice than he could count and whatever else came to mind, but it was no good. The smoke was at their knees...


	7. Chapter 7 Hanging By A Thread

"Oh, just be quiet!" Sam told Daniel "I'll try that meditation thing Teal'c does, Kel No Reem." She closed her eyes and tried to concentrate. Daniel saw the deadly gas winding its' way up their thighs as it filled the room, no doubt inhaling even a little of it would be fatal. Sam didn't know how, but she soon found herself thrust into the life of Jolinar. Maybe the lingering symbiote memories sensed her need, it was impossible to say.

She saw worlds, people and events, all whizzing past her at lightning speed. Jolinar had lived so long, experienced so much, and it was all going by in a headlong rush. Suddenly it came to a stop, and she was able to latch onto one thing. A deep and consuming love, so much akin to the one she held for Jack. But this love was allowed to ignite and spread, and the passion burned deep. She saw moonlight kisses on worlds she had never been to. She scented the aroma of the lover she never had. She felt that love being consummated. Sam was lost in sweet memories that were not were own, but not for long. Once more she jolted forwards, ever on and forwards, until she was struck with the deepest pain there is. Pain, agony, and then blackness. This was the end. After that memory there were no more, she was cast into a dark void. As she faded away from the world, Jolinar's life, her life, was now over.

When Carter had suddenly fallen over, Daniel quickly caught her before she tumbled into the noxious death-clouds below. He could only presume that she had somehow succeeded, and hoped that it would work. In mere moments, he felt her go limp. She had no pulse. She was not breathing. "Sam!" Daniel gave her a slap in a futile attempt to revive her. "Wake up Sam!" The door to the room opened and the gas started to recede back into the walls. There was no sign of life in Sam, he held a lifeless corpse in his arms. "It wasn't supposed to happen like this!" He shouted as he ran from the deadly room, in case the door closed again. He caught a glimpse of the writing on the wall but kept it out of his mind for now.

Once out of the room and on the right side of its' entrapping door, he laid her down and tried to revive her. There was nothing he could do, for the problem was not with the body. Sam's consciousness had been buried deep within her psyche, and with Jolinar's death it had not resurfaced. The body was a husk without a soul or mind, and was fading fast.

"Sam..." A silent tear found its' way from the depths of his heart, through his eye, and shattered onto the cold floor below. This was all his fault, he knew. Not only did he lead them into this maze, but he brought Sam into this room. All his fault, he brought only pain to his fellow members of SG-1. He didn't belong, he wasn't military, not cut out for this sort of thing... Sam's corpse silently accused him of a million flaws. Daniel leaned forward to deliver the kiss he never had the courage to give when she was alive. Now it was too late, and he would never have the chance...

When he was but a fraction of an inch from her delicately sweet but now lifeless lips he recoiled abruptly as he heard a familiar shout from behind him. "Daniel, what's wrong?" Jack shouted as he ran up with Teal'c. From his vantage point he hadn't seen what Daniel was doing, only assumed that he was trying to revive their comrade in arms.

Daniel had a sudden revelation. Maybe it was not too late! "Teal'c, quick, shoot her with your Zat gun!" He blurted out at the Jaffa. Not one to question, Teal'c took it out in a flash and delivered an electrical blast of energy. It was no good, Sam still lay lifeless on the floor. "Again, Teal'c, do it again!" Daniel shouted.

"Surely you do not mean that Daniel Jackson, two shots are always fatal." Teal'c spoke to the archaeologist.

"Do it Teal'c!" Jack ordered. He didn't know the situation, but was not about to lose a member of his team in some dirty Goa'uld's dank, stinking maze. With a second jolt, the Major's eyes opened in a dazed look and she leapt up off her feet. Everyone was dead quiet for a moment, shocked.

"I'm okay." Carter said and the sighs of relief were so loud that they could be heard echoing down the corridors far, far away.

"So we can see, Major Carter" Teal'c boomed out with his deep confident voice.

"How...how did you find us?" Daniel asked the two of the new arrivals as he regained his composure.

"Oh, you know, the usual. Assorted heroics, ingenious puzzle-solving. Nothing really." Jack told him.

"O'Neill fell into a pit, and I was forced to rescue him. When I saved him from certain doom and we followed the exit, we came upon you Daniel Jackson." Teal'c told his side of the story, which was quite a bit more accurate.

"Umm, sir," Carter began, a bit shaken from dying, but understandably so, "We have a problem." She looked at her watch, "By my count we've been here for...well...I think we have 8 seconds left." She said.

The walls began to shake, and they could fell the temperature rising. They all reached for their time-travel devices (And prayed that they worked). The devices had started glowing a pale rose colour, and they all pushed the button. Their perception quickly vanished, as their bodies were taken from the four dimensions in which they normally travel. They were whisked through seemingly random currents that ran unseen in other dimensions all around us, and were sent flowing back through time. At their new place in time, they were re-assigned new positions in the three spatial dimensions. They were about to try the game once more.

From his unique position of observation, Atum let out a maniacal laugh. These fools thought him more of a fool than they. They honestly thought he had no greater motive, the idiots. His plan was working just as he knew it would, and he had many surprises yet in store for these dolts. It was quite a bore being the mastermind he was at times, really, always knowing exactly the moves these pawns would make. An insidious grin twisted onto his face.


	8. Chapter 8 A Second Chance

Jettisoned from the strange dimensional flows they coursed through, SG-1 found themselves once again found themselves standing around in the chamber they had first entered. They had nothing to show for their time spent in the labyrinth thus far, save a few near-death experiences. Before they fully recovered from the transition back into our spatial dimensions, they were greeted by a holograph of Atum.

"Well, well." His proxy started, "You survived your first trip through, and all of you alive. As much as I'm sure you'd all love to do this over and over, I think it only fair to change the rules a but. I think now I will immolate this place in, say, oh forty minutes. After that I will give you twenty. If by then you still have not escaped, when you return in time you will be greeted by the self-same inferno that you just fled. Your petty lives may be able to linger here until you die, but I have far much more important things to attend do, so the show must really get on, so to speak." He gave them another of his dark laughs before his hologram cut out and they were left to ponder their situation.

"He can't just change the rules like that!" O'Neill protested.

"I believe he can, O'Neill." Teal'c disagreed.

"What happened to him being honourable and not lying?" Carter asked Daniel.

"Well, he didn't really." Daniel sighed, "He only said we'd have an hour that first time. He never promised us a thing for this time any other attempts."

"I guess we're only good for one hour's worth of entertainment, and occasionally two." Jack muttered. The group cast a despairing look about their surroundings. Hieroglyphs Daniel had half-translated carried grim warnings all round, the gate was blocked and only one option lay before them.

"Well, we may as well head out again. The clock is ticking." Samantha thought it time to get a move on. SG-1 reluctantly hobbled along like convicts on death row knowing that they left their cell only to go to their demise.

Daniel was thinking to himself. He knew he had seen something earlier...but what? He scanned the walls around him. No, the answer lay not there, but almost, something similar...Ah! He remembered pictures he had glimpsed on the walls of the sacrificial chamber. When they were halfway to the door into the first hallway, he finished his mental translation, and related his findings to his peers.

"They said what?" Jack asked him when he was done.

"'As a final act of defiance before we were destroyed by the evil God, we left behind a map detailing the method of escape from our city'" Daniel repeated himself, slightly exasperated.

"So somewhere in this labyrinth is a map to get us out?" Sam felt her hopes rising.

"But we have absolutely no idea where it is, so finding this map is just as hard as finding the way out, so it is entirely useless." Jack didn't see how this could help them at all.

"There must be something more, these ancient civilization is trying to help us." Daniel was grasping at something just beyond his reach. He knew there was something more he was missing, but didn't know what.

"It was no doubt put there by Atum himself in order to mislead us." Teal'c dismissed the option of escape.

"How could I've been so stupid!" Daniel shouted as realization dawned upon him.

"I don't know, presumably just like you always do it." Jack said.

"No, no ,no..." Daniel was smiling broadly, "Don't you see? It didn't just say they _left_ something, but that it was _left_. I believe that if we take all left hand turns from this room, which I now see as one fo the places where they once worshiped their true God, we will come upon the map!"

"Well, why didn't you say that in the first place?" Jack grumbled, "Let's go!"

They took many left turnings, and they had little occurrence to mark them as unusual. This fact lead them to believe they were on the wrong track; surely if this way was important it would be guarded. They would have turned back, but Teal'c's sense of direction, which was very well honed, told him that they were moving in an enclosing spiral, and that they were nearing the centre. So they pressed on.

They came in time to a fork in the road. The way left, where they wanted to go, was barred by a massive stone door. The way right, however, was freely open. There was an inscription on the door blocking them that Daniel translated. "'One must go right'" he said quickly.

"That's all?" Jack asked, wondering if he had got the abbreviated version. These pictures had seemed quite verbose earlier.

"Uh, yes." Daniel checked it over again.

"I will go." Teal'c stepped forward to go to the right.

"Watch your back there Teal'c, it could be dangerous." Sam cautioned the fearless former first prime. He gave her an arched eyebrow and a tilt of his head, clearly not understanding the idiom but relentless in his resolve to go forward.

The three humans of SG-1 saw their loyal ally walk forward four or five paces down the hall. He then turned, unsure of how much farther to proceed. As he turned to face SG-1, a stone door identical to the one on the left slammed down and cut him off. It's partner that was blocking the left route slowly ascended and granted passage.

"Didn't the people who built this place ever hear of normal doors? You know, a handle, maybe a little window, some hinges..." Jack spoke dryly.

"Let's go sir, fifteen minutes have already gone by." Samantha told her commanding officer. They went no to far down before they encountered the same situation once more. This time Sam spoke up. "I think I should go this time. Daniel will probably be needed to translate something to get the map."

"Well, I can go just as easily." Jack pointed out.

"Permission to speak freely sir?" Sam inquired.

"Sure." Jack granted.

"It has already been shown that you wouldn't last a minute in this place without Teal'c to pull you out of a pit or save you from an Unas." She smiled.

"Alright then, you go along. But I won't feel sorry if the Unas gets you for dinner." Jack spoke back to her. She was really something. Carter didn't even look back when she heard the stone slab behind her slam down.

When Daniel and Jack came to the room with the map in it, they saw they had a problem on their hands. Not only them, but Sam and Teal'c were about to be faced with difficult situations...


	9. Chapter 9 A False Proposal

Teal'c walked down the hall for a short while until it widened and opened quickly into a medium-sized spherical room. There were no decorations or anything, not even any pillars to support the dome overhead. It was most unusual. He approached the cavernous like room and saw that it had no exit. He saw little he could do, so he chose to sit in the middle and attempt to enter Kel No Reem but be on guard for any attackers.

He was about to begin when he noticed his time-travel device was missing, and he a sudden voice behind him.

"Teal'c!"

The voice was all too familiar.

Apophis.

Teal'c fired his Zat gun, as O'Neill called it, several times over his shoulder at the source of the voice as he spun around and prepared to do battle. Unluckily for him, it did not harm the Goa'uld through his shield. Teal'c calmed a little, he knew this could not be. This was not the real Apophis, but some sort of trickery from Atum. "You are a cur and a fiend, but you are not real!" Teal'c yelled, but he did not lower his staff weapon.

"Stop this foolishness! You are my First Prime."

"I am no longer a servant of false Gods!"

"Hah! You now serve lowly Tau'ri as less than a dog!"

"I am their friend and equal." Teal'c retorted to this illusion, but he felt himself becoming light-headed. He shook it off.

"So they may say, but how shallow that illusion is!" Apophis's eyes glowed with malevolence. "You do not have their trust. Still, General Hammond instantly doubts you when he can find no other to assign blame. Not even you precious comrade O'Neill trusts you!"

"He trusts me with his life daily!"

"He trusts only that you will act the obedient dog you are!" The self-stylized God bellowed. "You are not equal! They will not reveal to their people that you even exist. You are alien. Unwanted. They despise you deep inside, but use you for the tool you are."

"I am not a tool!"

"Oh, but you are. These humans have taken everything away from you and given you nothing."

"They have given me my honour!" Teal'c had forgotten that this was an illusion. His grip on reality was slipping, and his reasoning was corrupt. Apohis's words had great appeal, although he knew not why. He fought a silent losing battle.

"Honour! They know nothing of honour! They would destroy their enemies in whatever way presented itself! They think only of personal gain, they do not even care about their fellows. Humans are a plague that if let run free will only ultimately destroy the universe upon which they feed, and then themselves."

"That is a lie." Teal'c paused before he could force the words out, and only barely managed to.

"Lies? I do not give you lies. You are the one who gives himself a life full of lies. You have known nothing but misery since you abandoned me. I give you the chance to join me once more. You can once more gain honour and valor in proper battle."

Teal'c did not know why what was being proposed sounded so good. Part of him knew that his mind was being clouded, but he still felt himself succumbing. Honour. Valor. Were these things not good? He remembered the glory he once felt. And the pride. He need not turn against SG-1, merely leave them. He could even fight for Apophis against other system lords. Surely this would help the Tau'ri. But why should they be helped? They were a weak and inferior people, hardly fit to kneel at the feet of any God.

The last thought shattered his confusion. It was false. He shook his head, shaking the lies from his mind. Everything Apophis said was false. He himself was false, only an illusion. Lies, deception and trickery! This was some ploy of Atum! Teal'c glanced at his time-keeping device. There were only 12 seconds left before this place was destroyed! That was Atum's ploy, to distract him. This dialogue had taken longer than seemed possible. He remembered that he had lost the time-travel device, and saw it lying nearby. He jumped at it, and hit the button just as he felt flames licking against him. He could only hope that the others had not been ensnared and destroyed as he nearly had been.


	10. Chapter 10 Into The Fire

Jack and Daniel scratched their heads at the problem that lay before them. They saw the map in clear sight. It was raised up on a pedestal, plain to see. The catch was that the pedestal itself was a bit low. It was in something of a pit.

"So," Jack clapped his hands together once. "What are we gonna do about that hundred foot drop and lava filled pool?" He and asked Daniel. Their guide out of this place did indeed perch somewhat precariously over lava, many, many, many feet below them. After the hallway, there was just a small cliff before the sheer descent down. There was no way at all of getting to the scroll.

"Well, we could, umm..." Daniel was at a bit of a loss. They could _see_ the scroll, but that was about it.

"Yee-ah" Jack summed up their situation quite well. Daniel was rather worried that one of the occasional jets of flame that shot up from the lava would incinerate the scroll. "We could always...you know...jump." Jack suggested.

"Jump? Are you insane?" Daniel was not about to take a mad leap, over ten stories in height, into a pool of lava. Even if he somehow _did_ manage to land on one of the rocks and not into the boiling magma, the impact would still kill him.

"Well, we have these time thingies, we could always just...jet on back if we miss." Jack told him.

"Yes, well, those only work seconds before we all get immolated, do you suggest we just stand around here and talk until then?" Daniel really thought Jack was losing it now.

"Yeah, why not. Got any better ideas?" O'Neill asked him.

"I suppose not." Daniel admitted, and silence filled the air for a while.

"So, uh, anything new and interesting in archaeology?" Jack tried to drum up some conversation.

"No, not really." Daniel said reluctantly.

More silence.

"You have any interesting new hobbies?" Daniel inquired.

"Oh you, know, just sit around and watch TV or whatever when I'm not on duty." Jack admitted. When he wasn't blasting aliens, saving the universe or forging new alliances, life was a bit of a bore.

"Really?" Daniel inquired, "What shows in particular?"

"Oh, there's this one that really cracks me up." Jack laughed, "_Farscape_ or something like that. This guy goes through a worm-hole and can't get back."

"Hmm. No DHD?" Daniel didn't watch much TV.

"Nah, nah. Their worm-holes are totally different. They got it all wrong. He does meet one heck of a looker though. I wish they brought more people like her into the Stargate program." Jack wished. The women on TV were always so much more attractive. He felt that he was getting ripped off, somehow.

"Ahh, well. You know what they say, lucky in cards, unlucky in love." Daniel imparted some ancient wisdom.

"Lucky in cards? You kidding me? Teal'c cleaned me out in poker last night. It's impossible to read that guy." Jack thought the Jaffa had an unfair advantage, with that glum mug he had you couldn't tell a thing.

Daniel looked at his watch. Four minutes left. "Are we really going to just jump down there?" He asked.

"Not afraid of heights there, are you?" Jack gave him a questioning look.

"No, no, just of being splattered on sharp rocks or boiled alive in lava." Daniel told him.

"Oh. Maybe you fell off a cliff and died in a previous life. Or this one." O'Neill suggested.

"No, no deaths from falling yet. I think. To be honest I forget." Daniel admitted.

"Understandable." Jack empathized.

Another pause.

"Fifteen seconds left. We'll jump at ten." Jack said. "5...4...3...2...1...Cowabunga!" He cried as he took a running leap into the pit. Daniel leaped at the same time, and was also flying through the air.

"Ahhhh!" Daniel cried as he futilely attempted to grab at the air in an effort to gain some stability. His jump hadn't been as good as O'Neill's and he could clearly see that he had undershot the map. He didn't know how many seconds were left before he could use the device, but the lava was approaching fast. Real fast. Make that a little faster. He pushed the button over and over frantically. Just the instant as his body splashed into the lava and he felt his skin burning he pushed the button, he was whisked away.

Jack heard a splash behind and below him, where Daniel probably was, and didn't think that bode well for him. He ignored it though. They could probably get some DNA out of the rocks or a mosquito or something and bring him back. He didn't worry about Daniel, but about grabbing the map that was below and ahead of him, and he was approaching it fast.

He noticed the time-travel device illuminating a few seconds ago, and wondered how much time he had before the place was incinerated. "Come on, come on..." He thought, and he reached his hand out to the scroll. He passed just overhead, and snagged it as he continued his descent into the lava. The air exploded in fire as he pushed the button, but Time's protective arms enveloped him and brought him back, with the scroll in hand.


	11. Chapter 11 A Dance Of Death

As Carter walked down the hallway alone a shiver ran up her spine. She felt as if though the eyes of the people who used to leave at her were always on her back, watching. She knew that was ridiculous, but couldn't help herself. She had been profoundly disturbed after being inundated with Jolinar's memories. It had been difficult to retain her personal identity while amidst those memories from thousands of years.

She didn't like being out of the loop, having no idea how successful Daniel and Jack were. But she knew that if they encountered a problem, they'd come up with some ingenious solution. They'd be cautious, and not just do the first thing that came to mind. These thoughts took away some of the tension, but she was still alone and in a strange place.

She saw odd paintings and murals all around her, on the floors and on the walls. At some places there were even scenes depicted on tapestries covering other scenes on the walls. Some of them were beautiful, picturesque scenes, some of them horrific battles with gore all over. It didn't mean much to her though. She could deal with theorems and facts any day of the week, but these things were just way too oblique for her. Daniel was the sort to make these loose connections.

She came to a room that had doors all around. She counted a total of twelve doors. She was turning around and looking at them all when she heard noises coming from some of them. Not just some of them she thought, all of them. And they were getting closer. She raised her gun down one of them and saw a savage with blood red eyes, a cruel barbed spear and animal teeth necklaces and bracelets covering his body. He came from around a corner and ran towards her. He was about to throw his spear when Sam opened fire, only to see another one jump over his corpse from behind. They were pouring in from all sides, even the way she had come.

Carter tried to stop them all, but it was impossible. She opened fire on one, turned and took down another, but others from all the places she hadn't hit came closer. And closer. One of them hurled into Sam and sent her rifle flying. They now circled around her and began chanting something.

"Atum! Atum! Atum! Atum!" They bellowed in unison. So, it would appear he had managed to convert some of the locals after all. Just great. She stole a quick glance at her watch, but saw that she had another eight minutes before she could travel back in time. She withdrew her combat knife and looked longingly at the gun that was beyond her reach, past the circle of berserker fighters. One of the warriors jumped from the circle and lunged at her. It had been a long time since basic combat training. A very long time.

Nevertheless, she grabbed the spear shaft as it darted towards her neck and pushed it upwards as she rolled into her attacker. She planted the knife in his ribs and seized his spear from his dead hands. She attempted to throw it against one of the people in the ring, but it cluttered uselessly against a hide shield.

They were not happy that she had slain their comrade, and they were closing the circle. Their spears were only inches away, and she could be stabbed and slain from a dozen different directions at once. She turned to try and defend all directions, but it was useless. They were toying with her. No matter which way she turned, the ones at her back would cut her with small slashes.

When Sam first felt her skin being ripped apart she turned around instantly, only to have someone behind her open up a second wound. She had to break from the circle or they would slowly bleed her to death with a thousand cuts. She waiting for a gap, sustaining more slices every second, but finally saw her chance. She lunged between two spear points and pushed them apart. She gave one of the two warriors a sharp elbow to the face and the other a knife to the abdomen. She tried to take a few more steps to recover her firearm, but the enemies reacted quickly.

She gasped in pain and looked down to see a spear point coming out of her thigh, having pierced it from the other side. It caused her to fall, but she managed to go into a roll to cover the distance to her P90. She grabbed it and whirled around. Now that the enemy were in a cluster, they fell prey to modern technology with horrifying speed. One down. Another. Bang. Death. Time seemed to slow for her. Bang...bang...bang... Another life extinguished. Although time crawled, it was over in an instant.

Sam cringed. Not at the thousand jagged pangs of fire cut into her back, or her torn and useless left leg. She cringed at the pile of around thirty bodies she had created on the floor in front of her. The last few had almost stopped her when she had to reload, but they were soon mowed down a few paces in front of the others. She was a scientist, not a soldier. She had not joined the Air Force to murder people. Shooting enemies blasting her with staff weapons was one thing, and she could handle blowing up alien motherships, but mowing down savages armed with spears was something entirely different. These people were living, breathing human beings. They probably didn't attack her of their own will. Atum had forced them. She should've tried to negociate. She should've made a break for it at first sign of trouble. She should've, she should've, she should've...

"I'm useless." she thought. If Jack had been here he would've been able to handle this situation. She was foolish for thinking she could be the one to go off alone. She just wasn't cut out for command. She relected on the lifeless bodies all around her.Taking a deep breath, shelet the soldier conditioning handle it. They were hostile. It had to be done. It was _not_ murder. The words sounded very hollow indeed when dozens of lifeless corpses were bearing silent testament to what she had done. But there was no changing what she had done. Best to just move on, if she sat here more could come and attack.

She breathed in.

And out.

She resolved to get up and continue exploring, but realized she had forgotten something very important. Her leg. She couldn't move, she'd just have to sit around in this room. She was not having a very good day, this mission was a disaster and she just wanted it to end. In fact, her whole career working at the SGC was a series of disasters that through only a series of wild improbabilities and last minute breakthroughs had not yet resulted in the Earth's destruction. All they had managed to do was create more enemies. No matter what they did, they were only upping the ante. They stop two Goa'uld ships and they send two more. Stop those and they send bigger, more powerful ships. The problem was that they had a siege mentallity.All they did was defend, defend and defend. If they were ever going to win this war they had to go on the offensive more. It was high time they wipe out the Goa'uld. As her experience just showed her, sometimes it's you or them and you make your choice. The enemy seemed insurmountable, but maybe, just maybe, the answer lay on the next world they would visit. Sam knew she couldn't afford to give up till she visited that next world and found the answers needed. Billions depended on it.

She had three more long minutes to feel the accusatory stares of the dead before she used the device to return to the others by going back in time. You never know, maybe the answer to all their problems was somewheres on this planet.

A note - I changed this chapter a bit because someone thought Sam was out of character.While I do not agree, I still changed it to make her conform more to what they would probably think to be more normal Sam behavior. I wouldagree that the original version of this chapter was a bit out of place.


	12. Chapter 12 Escape The Inescapable

They were all in the gate room, some in better shape than others. "Well, I got the map." Jack raised it triumphantly, noticing that one of its' corners had almost caught fire from the inferno he quickly pinched the small sparks out. He then noticed the shape his team was in. Daniel had severe burns, exposure to the lava for even a fraction of a second had taken its' toll on him.

"Nothing Dr Fraser and a little time won't cure." Daniel felt some of his skin peeling off as he spoke. It looked like he shouldn't try to speak much. He directed Jack's attention to Sam with a nod.

"Holy smokes, Carter, what did you do to your leg?" Jack asked her.

"Ran into some of the locals." She told him.

"Oh. Nice guys?" O'Neill asked.

Carter pointed to her leg.

"No then I guess." Jack said. "Teal'c carry Carter. Daniel, you'll have to lead and tell us where to go. I hope you can walk without too much trouble. I'll bring up the rear and try to cover you guys if we run into trouble. We'd better get a move on, we only have twenty minutes."

Even though she was slumped over Teal'c's shoulder, Sam insisted on carrying a Zat gun to help defend the group should the need arise. They set out at a brisk pace, and every step caused Sam and Daniel pain, but it had to be done.

Daniel led them left, right, straight, straight, second fork from the left and on and on. There was no chance they would ever take this route randomly if given any amount of time, they could only hope they could follow it to its' end in under twenty minutes. Jack looked at his watch. Make that sixteen minutes.

Just then he saw the Unas make his second appearance, coming out some distance behind them. When the Unas spotted them in gave a primal roar and started running at them at an incredible speed.

"Faster people, let's move!" Jack yelled at the group, but they were already going faster than they could. Sam and Jack tried blasting it, but its' shield protected it well. It had traversed almost half the distance towards them, and was gaining quick.

"I have an idea sir!" Sam hoped it would work, "These time-travel devices must require an enormous amount of energy. A blast from a Zat gun could be enough to send it into overload, and the subsequent explosion just might do the trick." She tossed her Zat gun to O'Neill, who took out his time device as they continued to run as fast as they could.

Jack gave the device one shot, and it began to hum loudly. The humming rose in pitch, and it began to emit light. The Unas was going to reach them in another few strides. "Now sir!" Sam yelled, and Jack threw the thing at the Unas. It bounced off his shield, and he stopped to look at the now incandescent object on the ground before him. Just before it blew, SG-1 rounded a corner which shielded them from the blast. The Unas however, was not so lucky. It was destroyed in a devastating blue explosion.

SG-1 had no time to look back, however, because time was still their enemy. They pressed ever forwards. Arrows now flew from the walls as they tripped switches on the floor. Pits of spikes opened before them, and they had to be leapt across without slowing. Scything blades swished from left to right, and they darted in-between them whenever they could. And still they ran for their lives. They had seven minutes left.

"Now all we need is a boulder to start chasing us and we're set!" Jack exclaimed sarcastically. He regretted it instantly, for at that precise moment a gargantuan rock crashed from the ceiling behind them and rolled towards them with deadly intent. It chased them for sometime, but they finally took a left turn and heard it smash into the wall behind them with massive force. The walls shuddered at its' impact.

Right. Left. Straight. Left. Left. Across the atrium. Straight. Left. Daniel wasn't looking at his surroundings, but was focused on the instructions before him. He still heard the others right behind him, though. "We're almost there!" he said with hope in his voice as he nearly the last instruction to the exit.

They were in a massive hall lined with towering pillars on each side. They saw a broad gate just ahead of them. "Thirty seconds, come on people move it!" Jack told them. They saw the gates closing, and felt the temperature rising. The inferno was coming soon. The gate was open only a crack as Daniel leaped through it, and Teal'c close behind with Carter. Jack, the last one, twisted sideways in the air, and landed with a thud on the other side. A few flames spewed out just before the gate closed, and blocked the inferno in.

They were all panting, and Carter fought off a grimace as she sat up. "We made it sir!" she exclaimed resoundingly "We're safe."

"Yeah, but we have just a little problem." Jack pointed out. "The Gate was in there, remember? How the heck are we going home?"

Sam's heart fell. She had not thought of that. As smart as she was, she just didn't have the head for the practical that O'Neill did. They didn't have long to ponder their misfortune though, for a familiar voice hailed them from behind.

"Hello once again, O'Neill" Thor said, and Jack and the others all turned with awe at the speaker. How had he shown up just now?

"Hey there, buddy!" Jack gave a deep laugh as he caught sight of his new best friend. Jack had been stranded on alien worlds before, and anyone who could take him off was definitely someone worth their weight in gold. Quite a bargain in Thor's case, since he didn't weight very much.

"I sent my ship here when I detected a time-space explosion. You are to blame, I presume?" Thor stated.

"Err, I guess so, what's the problem with a time-space explosion?" O'Neill asked Thor. You really had to like this guy, he probably cut the techno-babble out just for Jack's sake. Carter was scandalized every time he asked her not to speak in tongues.

"The Asgard and the Goa'uld long ago signed a treaty prohibiting devices causing time-space explosions. The blasts they cause are unpredictable, and in theory capable of destroying the entire universe." He looked at them with his solid black eyes.

"All we did was take out a scrawny little Unas with one." Jack told him, not seeing the problem.

"Yes, well it was far more likely that the explosion would've destroyed this entire planet, or also several neighbouring solar systems." Thor informed the group.

"Whoops." Carter said. She hypothesized that it could be big, but...

"Whoops indeed Major Carter." Thor lectured her. It was most unusual receiving a reprimanding tone from an Asgard. "It is not important. I presume it was necessary. I have detected that the Stargate that was once on this planet has been destroyed. Would you..." He paused briefly, "...like a lift?"

"You know what? It just so happens that we would." Jack replied, and they were all sent to Thor's ship in orbit.


	13. Chapter 13 Safety? Or Doom To Come?

Shortly after SG-1 had left his planet, Atum snickered. The fools thought that they were safe. Give them a big nasty maze and they think that's all you had in mind. He knew that any successful plan was a feint-within-a-feint-within-a-feint. The fools were just as doomed as they were in the maze, but now they had condemned their entire planet to perish wish them. And others. His time to step out of his self-enforced exile and unite the lesser Gods that he had created was coming. Kill SG-1? They were worthless, his true plan had far greater scope. He would become leader of the Goa'uld. And kill the troublesome Tau'ri. _And_ wipe out the Asgard. All in one beautiful stroke. The best part was that the stoke had already been delivered, now it was only a matter of time. He need only wait. His dark laughter sent birds flying from the trees for miles.


	14. Chapter 14 Supper

With the advanced technology onboard Thor's ship, Sam and Daniel were fully healed and the team were soon in orbit of Earth. General Hammond checked the time. "How long until SG-1 are due to report back?" He asked as he looked at the Stargate from above.

"About ten minutes, sir" Jack said from behind. Thor had teleported all of them directly into this room. "We're a bit early, if you don't mind."

"How the...?" Hammond asked.

"Don't worry sir, we'll explain it all in the debriefing. If you don't mind, I think I'll have supper first." Jack slapped his commander on the shoulder and left the room. The look on Hammond's face was priceless. If General Hammond insisted on always having briefings, O'Neill thought it only fair that he not explain things until the debriefing. He had done enough work for now.

The mission had been dicey at times, but it had worked out marvelously in the end. They all escaped unscathed, and with some nice new toys too. Thor had let them keep the three time devices, after they promised to never detonate them. They couldn't get the damn things to work, nor make heads or tails of them in any way. But the data they had acquired about the other two unique elements in them was worth billions. Or at least Carter seemed to think so. When he got to Mess Hall and asked for a nice, big, juicy steak, he got a bit of a disappointment.

"Sorry sir," The server said, "Our supplies are a bit pushed back. They'll be replenished tomorrow, don't worry. But in the meantime all we have are fruitloops. Here you go." Jack scowled as a large bowl of fruitloops was placed on his tray. Ah, well, maybe tomorrow would be a better day...

_La Fin_


End file.
